Course Overview
The AP English Literature and Composition course is designed
to teach college level writing and reading through the fundamentals of
rhetorical theory which follows the curricular requirements described in the AP English Course Description. The course includes in-depth reading of texts
drawn from multiple genres, periods, and cultures such as those cited in the AP English Course Description. Students read several longer works prior to
the first day of class, several novels and dramas throughout the course, as
well as numerous shorter works.
The course includes a variety of writing experiences both
formal and informal, based on careful observation of textual details. Writing
experiences include, but are not limited to, formal, extended analyses; timed,
in-class responses; and journals. Students have many opportunities to pre-write,
write, evaluate, revise, and rewrite based on self, peer, and teacher
evaluations. Writing experiences are
designed to help students develop a wide ranging vocabulary, a variety of
sentence structures, logical organization, appropriate illustrative details,
and effective use of rhetoric. The
course requires writing to understand, to explain, and to evaluate.
Throughout the course, students study novels, dramas, short
stories, essays, and poetry. While this
syllabus identifies these as “Study” (unit), in practice, these genres are
interspersed throughout the course. These “unit” descriptions as defined in
this syllabus provide an overview of the concepts and content covered.
NOVEL STUDY
READING ASSIGNMENTS:
Prerequisite reading
assignments are required.
v
Wuthering Heights, Emily Bronte or Frankenstein Mary Shelley
v
All the Pretty Horses Cormac
McCarthy or Snow Falling on Cedar, David Guterson
Major works covered will
include:
v
The Metamorphosis Franz Kafka
v
Invisible Man Ralph
W. Ellison or Native Son Richard Wright or Crime and Punishment Feodor Dostosyevsky
v
Their Eyes Were Watching God Zora Neale Hurston
Two
more works of literary merit of teacher choice are required. These works include:
v
Faust Johann
Wolfgang von Goethe
v
Heart of Darkness Joseph Conrad
v
Madame Bovary Gustave
Flaubert
v
The Bluest Eye Toni
Morrison
v
The Sound and the Fury William Faulkner
v
The Stranger Albert Camus
v
The Sun Also Rises Ernest Hemingway
v
Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger
v
An American Tragedy Theodore Dreiser
v
In the Lake of the Woods or Things They
Carried Tim O’Brien
v
Joy Luck Club
Amy Tan
Essential Questions addressed through the study of the
novel
- How is
the novel a mirror of the time and culture?
- How do
literary devices affect the work as a whole?
- What
qualities make this a work of “literary merit”?
- How
does the structure of the novel affect the meaning of the work?
- How
does the style influence the tone, character development, and plot?
- How
does the theme, content, and form of this novel compare to other works?
Activities and Writing Assignments
- Whole
class and small group discussions addressing essential questions
- Response
journals for personal reactions, interpretation, and comparisons
- In-class,
timed writing assignments based on AP prompt style and evaluated with AP
9-point rubric
- Analysis
of sample student AP essays provided by AP workshops
- Formal,
analytical typed essays
- Opportunities
to evaluate, revise and rewrite essays
- Evaluation
of writing for wide ranging vocabulary, a variety of sentence structures,
logical organization, appropriate illustrative details, and effective use
of rhetoric.
- WEB
quests researching authors, time periods, and cultures
DRAMA STUDY
Reading Assignments
A prerequisite reading
assignment is required.
v
The Glass Menagerie Tennessee Williams
Major works covered will
include:
v
King
Lear or Othello or Hamlet William
Shakespeare
v
Oedipus Rex Sophocles
v
The Misanthrope
or The Miser Moliere
Two
more works of literary merit of teacher choice are required. These works include:
v
Murder in the Cathedral Samuel Beckett
v
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (in conjunction with Hamlet) Tom Stoppard
v
No Exit
Jean-Paul Satre
v
Waiting for Godot Samuel Beckett
v
Dr. Faustus Christopher Marlowe
Other dramatic pieces for
study are selected from past AP exams and AP resource material.
Essential Questions addressed through the study of
drama
- How
does the drama mirror the time and culture?
- How do
dramatic devices affect the work as a whole?
- What
qualities make this a work of “literary merit”?
- How
does the structure of the drama affect the meaning of the work?
- How
does the style influence the tone, character development, and plot?
- How
does the theme, content, and form of this drama compare to other works?
- How
have dramatic elements and conventions changed throughout time and across
cultures?
Activities and Writing Assignments
- Whole
class and small group discussions addressing essential questions
- Dramatic
readings showing interpretive understanding
- Response
journals
- In-class,
timed writing assignments based on AP prompt style and evaluated with AP
9-point rubric
- Analysis
of sample student AP essays provided by AP workshops
- Formal,
analytical typed essays
- Evaluation,
revision, and rewriting of essays
- Evaluation
of writing for wide ranging vocabulary, a variety of sentence structures,
logical organization, appropriate illustrative details, and effective use
of rhetoric.
SHORT STORY STUDY
Reading Assignments
“A & P” John Updike
“A Rose for Emily” William Faulkner
“Sonny’s Blues” James Baldwin
“The Jilting of Granny Weatherall”
Katherine Anne Porter
“Gimpel the Fool” Isaac Bashevis Singer
“The Storm” Kate Chopin
“A Pair of Tickets” Amy Tan
Other short stories are included based on class interests
and needs. Stories are selected from Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and
Drama. X. J. Kennedy & Dana Gioia,
ed. 8th interactive edition, Longman Press, New York, N.Y. Other pieces
of prose include samples from past AP exams and AP resource material.
Essential Questions addressed through the study of
short fiction
- How
does the story mirror the time and culture?
- How do
the elements of the short story affect the work as a whole?
- What
qualities make this a work of “literary merit”?
- How
does the structure of the story affect the meaning of the work?
- How
does the style influence the tone, character development, and plot?
- How
does the theme, content, and form of this story compare to other works?
- How has
storytelling changed over time?
- Which
fictional element is of primary importance in this piece, and what is the
effect on the meaning of the work as a whole?
Activities and Writing Assignments
- Whole
class and small group discussions addressing essential questions
- Informal,
analytical writing responses
- Short,
creative writing assignments based on particular fictional elements
- In-class,
timed writing assignments based on AP prompt style and evaluated with AP
9-point rubric
- Analysis
of sample student AP essays provided by AP workshops
- Evaluation,
revision, and rewriting
- Evaluation
of writing for wide ranging vocabulary, a variety of sentence structures,
logical organization, appropriate illustrative details, and effective use
of rhetoric.
- Comparative
analysis of literary elements from various pieces
- Read
published, critical essays about short stories and/or authors
POETRY STUDY
Reading Assignments
Samples of lyric, narrative,
and dramatic poetry are selected from Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and
Drama. X. J. Kennedy & Dana Gioia,
ed. 8th interactive
edition, Longman
Press, New York, N.Y. Other poems
are selected from sample AP exams and AP resource material.
Essential Questions addressed through the study of
poetry
- How
does the poem mirror the time and culture?
- How do
the elements of the poem affect the work as a whole?
- What
qualities make this a work of “literary merit”?
- How
does the structure of the poem affect the meaning of the work?
- How
does the style influence the tone and theme?
- How
does the theme, content, and form of this poem compare to other works?
- How
has poetry changed over time?
- Which
poetic devices are of primary importance in this piece and what is the
effect on the meaning of the work as a whole?
Activities and Writing Assignments
- Whole
class and small group discussions addressing essential questions
- Informal,
analytical writing responses
- Short,
creative writing assignments based on particular poetic devices
- In-class,
timed writing assignments based on AP prompt style and evaluated with AP
9-point rubric
- Analysis
of sample student AP essays provided by AP workshops
- Evaluation,
revision, and rewriting
- Evaluation
of writing for wide ranging vocabulary, a variety of sentence structures,
logical organization, appropriate illustrative details, and effective use
of rhetoric.
- Comparative
analysis of poems
- Read
published, critical essays about poets and their poems